Thinking Out Loud
by newlegacies
Summary: "It was Piper's cursive-like scrawl. The paper was a bit frayed, like it'd been in his pocket for a long time, and the corners were curved from erosion. In it were only two words: Deep breath." Jason/Piper drabble.


**A/N: This is a shortest-of-short drabble for Jason and Piper! I thought that since I wasn't giving enough love to the Percy Jackson fandom I should write this. Don't worry; this story has my writer juices flowing and many more PJO stories are in progress! Enjoy!**

**I don't own PJO. The best of the best Uncle Rick does.**

* * *

_People fall in love in mysterious ways_

_Maybe just the touch of a hand_

_Well, me—I fall in love with you every single day_

_(Ed Sheeran, Thinking Out Loud)_

* * *

"Hey, Jase," Piper greeted him as he opened the door to their apartment. She was slouched over their recliner watching the Big Bang Theory in her pajamas. A popcorn bowl was cradled in her arms. "How's the job hunt going?"

Jason shrugged and set down his briefcase. "I don't know," he admitted, sighing. "It's tough right now."

Piper gave him a wry smile, pausing the episode. "Why would anyone give up the chance to hire a hot, capable graduate? Especially when his name is Jason?"

"Oh, shush, Pipes," he grinned, walking across the living room to give her a peck on the cheek. "It's not that easy. As for you, well, you tell 'em that your dad is Tristan McLean and they'll be eating right out of your hand."

"Alright, alright, I get it. But for your information, I did not tell _anyone_ my dad was the big scary Tristan McLean on my first gig."

Jason laughed. Ever since the war was over, Piper started taking an interest in acting and musical theater. Of course, her father had been all for it. When she was in college getting her degree in the arts, he'd offered to notify some producers that she was stepping on the scene once she graduated. Being Piper, she'd refused, wanting to start from scratch like Tristan did.

"Speaking of gigs, how was that audition for the movie?" he asked her.

"Oh, fine," Piper yawned, stretching lazily. Her shirt rose up to her midriff. "The director was kind of rude, but the plot is really cool. I screwed up some of the lines, but other than that, I think I have a pretty good chance of getting in."

Jason grabbed a can of Sprite. "Okay, so I know that when you get the part it won't be because you used charmspeak."

Piper clutched her heart in mock agony. "Wow, you've really gotten sassier since you started living with me. I think I may be rubbing off on you."

"Ha, ha," he said, ambling over to her side. "That might be it, actually."

"Mm, I wouldn't be surprised."

"Well, I gotta go start my paper," Jason said, glancing at his watch. "College and all."

She glanced at him. "Oh yeah, how's the experience? Would you rather be in a frat house than live with me?"

"Nah," he smiled. "You know that I could never live with a frat, especially with all the drinking."

"That would be fine with me."

"You're hilarious."

She rewarded him with a light laugh and a kiss. "Yeah, I know."

"Okay, I seriously need to go," Jason said. He wrenched himself away from her. "I'm leaving before you start trying to seduce me."

Piper sent him a mischievous grin. "Please, I'm not going to seduce you in my sweats. Plus, we are most definitely not having sex today. I have to get to Los Angeles tomorrow morning, it's some sort of premiere that's happening. Gotta support my fellow mortals in the show biz."

"Dammit," Jason opened his laptop and pulled up an open Word Document. "You're leaving? I would _hate_ to have an extra guy's night with Percy and Leo."

"I can see that you're dying to have me stay, Jason."

He let out a loud whoosh of air. "I gotta get working, or else I'll be behind on this paper. You know how it is, Piper."

"Okay, I see that I'm unwelcome." She stood up and stretched, giving him one last kiss on the cheek. "I'll be at Percy's place. He could use some publicity."

Jason smirked at his screen, typing rapidly. "I'll order pizza. Until then, don't bother me, okay?"

"Of course." Piper said, jangling the keys. She opened the apartment door, ready to leave. "Jason? Deep breath, loosen up a little. Not everything in life is just schoolwork, you know."

"_Piper._"

She laughed. "Love you too."

* * *

"Crap, crap, _crap, _where did it go," Jason cursed, "where did that presentation go?"

He frantically pushed over some foldout chairs in desperation, wincing when one of them toppled over onto his foot. "Piper?" he called, "Have you seen where my board went?"

Piper poked her head out of the bathroom, her mouth full of bobby pins. "Sorry, dude, kind of busy," she mumbled, pushing her hair back.

He collapsed on a chair in despair. "I have to leave for my presentation at the college in fifteen minutes, Pipes. I'm so disorganized, I can't find my presentation board, and on top of that, I have to pay for the college classes..."

"C'mon, relax," she said, taking the pins off of her lips, "You'll do fine on the presentation. The apartment isn't very big. Plus, you know Dad has the money covered for you."

"I know, it's just embarrassing," he muttered, covering his face with his hands. "And - Piper, do you know where my glasses are?"

"One step ahead of ya," Piper said. She walked over and placed the glasses on the bridge of his nose. She patted his chest and pulled him up into a hug, her fingers still wrapped around her bobby pins. "Stop stressing."

He forced a smile. "You're right," he chuckled lowly. "I guess it's because I've had my whole life planned to the last second, sometimes I get freaked out..."

"No big," Piper shrugged, stepping back. "It happens to the best of us."

"I'm so glad you're here," he said, kissing her head.

She smiled. "There's a reason why we're engaged. C'mon, Jase, take a deep breath and go search for that board. You're going to do great on your presentation."

* * *

"Stop pacing, kid, you're gonna wear yourself out," Coach Hedge advised. He stood next to the drinking fountain, where Percy was making the fountain water do animal shapes.

Jason took a deep breath and wiped his glasses. He smoothed the cowlick of hair that had been bothering him since he brought Piper to the hospital. Despite the the older satyr's advice, he found himself unsettled and restless. How could he calm down when his wife was in the room across the hall, going through labor? How could he even stop pacing over and over when his child was about to be born into the world?

"It's going to be fine, Jason," Hazel said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Piper's a strong girl."

Jason tried to remember how to breathe. In and out. In and out.

"She's going to be okay," Reyna reassured him, putting her arm around him. She'd come all the way from San Francisco on the back of Pegasus, who was generous enough to help as transportation. "Nothing's going to happen. You're going to have a beautiful baby boy. Piper will be alive and well."

The thought of Piper dying because of their child made Jason light-headed. He shrunk into the cushioned chair behind him, chest heaving. He could hear her heavy breathing resonating in the hallway.

He shivered. Reyna continued to pat his back.

"Percy, what are you doing?" Annabeth asked from her seat a little ways off, squinting at him. A National Geographic magazine dangled from her fingers.

Percy paused momentarily in his concentration. The water dropped immediately, splashing everywhere, effectively waking Frank from his nap. He sat up with a yelp. "Hey!"

"Sorry," Percy mumbled sheepishly, gathering paper towels. "Here, Frank. Annabeth, what does it look like I'm doing? I'm effectively taking my mind off of my best friend who is giving birth to a child."

_Piper is giving birth to a child_, Jason repeated over and over in his mind. _She is giving birth to our child._

"First of all, look at how freaked out Jason is," Annabeth said. "He's literally shaking - is he shaking, Reyna?"

Jason covered his face with his hands. "Not helping."

"And you think you're having problems," Annabeth continued to chide Percy. She turned to Jason. "Do you have a pack of gum anywhere? It might help you with your nervousness, distract you a bit."

Jason stuck his hands in his pockets, feeling around. He usually kept a pack in there for fresh breath on dates with Piper and meetings with his boss, but it wasn't in his pockets anywhere.

He tried his coat pockets. Sticking his hand into his right pocket, he was surprised to feel a small slip of paper. Upon taking it out and unfolding it, he looked at what was inside.

It was Piper's cursive-like scrawl. The paper was a bit frayed, like it'd been in his pocket for a long time, and the corners were curved from erosion. In it were only two words: _Deep breath_.

_Deep breath_, Jason thought as Piper's screams echoed over and over. He clutched the paper tightly, closing his eyes. _Deep breath_.


End file.
